Death Stranding is one of the most unique games Hideo Kojima has ever created, and that’s saying something. It’s an almost meditative experience about picking your way through dangerous environments as you deliver vital packages to survivors in a post-apocalyptic America, a kind of supernatural mailman simulator. But it can be jarring when a massive boss battle with a hideous creature breaks up that contemplative flow, a problem Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is hoping to address with a new feature that lets players skip boss battles.
Death Stranding 1’s first boss battle comes as a pretty big shock. You’ve been trying your best to avoid the terrifying invisible creatures known as BTs for over a dozen hours for fear of having your packages damaged. You finally get a grenade that lets you deal with the monsters, and then just an hour or so later, you have to throw a dozen of them at a giant octopus as it chases you around a city of buildings floating in goop. The game introduces the tools and gameplay techniques to tackle bosses properly, but it’s easy to see how these moments might feel out of place for anyone who just wants that low-key simulation stuff.
